Bernstein was both a brilliant orchestrator and gifted tunesmith, penning some of the most memorable melodies ever written. As part of the Bernstein centenary, Deutsche Grammophon presents the ultimate collection of his greatest songs from West Side Story, Candide & On The Town – masterpieces at the zenith of this extraordinary composer's creative canon.

DG’s recording of West Side Story, made in New York, in September 1984, represents Bernstein’s final vision for his great American musical. This wasn't a typical 'cast recording': everybody was recruited especially for the job and moulded, literally overnight, into a musical team; and for Bernstein, who had never conducted the work before, it was an opportunity to explore the work as he had envisioned it.

Michael Tilson Thomas’s recording of On the Town features an inspired cast, and a more perfect pairing of soloists has seldom graced a Broadway show.

The performances from Candide are drawn from Bernstein’s last-ever studio sessions and represent the composer’s final thoughts on his great opera. Moreover, DG’s version of it is seen as the definitive statement of one of his greatest and most accessible compositions, created just eleven months before his untimely passing.